Finally, Justice For A Dalit

Bhaiyyalal Bhotmange faces an angry Khairlanji after a landmark verdict sentences his family’s killers to death, reports RANA AYYUB

Photo: Deepak Salvi

IF LOOKS could kill, Bhaiyyalal Bhotmange would, like the rest of his family, be dead. As he returns to his village for the first time since the verdict in the Khairlanji massacre case, venomous glares greet him. Khairlanji, an OBC-dominated village with just two dalit families resembles a garrison — 65 policemen with the Superintendent of Police (SP) monitoring the area. An eerie silence accompanies the tense atmosphere.

Bhotmange is the sole survivor of the September 2006 massacre. In full view of the villagers, his wife and daughter were gangraped, mutilated and killed. His two sons, who were forced to watch, were tortured and killed as well. Treated as the fallout of a village feud but later recognised as an anti-dalit atrocity, the massacre led to widespread outcry.

The sessions court in Bhandara sentenced six of the accused to death and two to life imprisonment. Bhotmange says he appreciates the verdict, but is not content with it. “My wife and daughter were molested. My family was hacked to death. All because we were dalits who dared to work hard and live with dignity. I regret that there were no convictions under laws punishing caste atrocities and laws punishing assaults intended to outrage the modesty of women,” he says. Special Public Prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam agrees. “During the cross-examination, Bhotmange revealed that before the massacre he was the target of ridicule by the villagers and suffered discrimination because he was a dalit. Therefore, it is clear that this is a case of a caste atrocity. Though the death sentence has been passed, we wish the accused had been convicted under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act,” said Nikam.

A tear betrays Bhotmange’s emotions as he points out the school his daughter used to attend. “She was in her first year of college. ‘Baba, I will study hard and become a police officer!’ she used to say.”

Bhotmange’s family was an easy target for deep-rooted social and caste hatred because it was one of the two dalit families in Khairlanji. Bhotmange had moved here 20 years ago to farm the five acres which belonged to his mother. The family and Bhotmange’s wife, Surekha, in particular, worked hard and prospered. Surekha also fought to regain a portion of their land grabbed by upper caste villagers. This, and the fact that the dalit family dared to educate its children and stood up for its rights incensed the other villagers. Dilip Uke, a villager with whom Bhotmange has been staying since the massacre, says the family’s struggle for its rights was their doom. “In a village where the people do not even touch the water at a dalit’s house, Bhotmange’s family was an exception,” says Uke.

As we tour the village along with Bhotmange — the first time the police has allowed anyone to do so after the verdict — we come across the Dhande family. Four of its members have been sentenced to death. The mother of the family appears dazed and does not react to anything. No villager speaks to us. When we talk to them, it feels as if one is talking to a wall. ”None of the villagers will talk to you. But while they don’t react, you can feel the simmering tension and the anger,” says SP Shweta Korade.

When asked if he feels empathy for the family of those sentenced to death, Bhotmange retorts, “Did they feel bad when they butchered my family? The entire village laughed while my family was killed and their bodies mutilated. I want all of them to die. I am going to appeal in the high court and to the CBI to reopen the cases and will press for the conviction of all those acquitted.”

This sentiment is echoed by dalits across the state, for whom this verdict brings the hope that they too might be able to lead a life with dignity. Ejaz Khan, the CBI advocate who fought this case says, “It is the first judgement of its kind after the Mumbai blasts case verdict. It will act as a deterrent and send a strong message to society.”

The judgement can also be welcomed, because very few cases of anti-dalit atrocities result in strong sentences. Be it the case of the Gavai brothers, whose eyes were scooped out, or the infamous murders of the Thumbre brothers in Yavatmal, the accused are usually exonerated or given mild sentences.

Dinkar Raikar, editor of Lokmat, one of Maharashtra’s most popular newspapers, observes: “Such a judgement is rare in Maharashtra, especially in the case of anti-dalit atrocities. However, we will have to wait and watch to see how events unfold.”

About 5,000 dalits who had come to hear the judgement celebrated, but politicians like Professor Joginder Kawade, President of the

Sweet vengeance: Bhaiyyalal Bhotmange is under constant police protection Photo: Deepak Salvi

People’s Republican Party, seethed. “What are these people rejoicing for? Do they call this justice? The massacre has been made to look like just another criminal case. The judge says rape and molestation cannot be proved. Did he not see the pictures of the women? He also says the massacre can’t be seen as an anti-dalit atrocity because the FIR does not mention that the killers were OBCs! So what are we celebrating for? The verdict is an eyewash and dalits have been taken for a ride,” he concludes. Kawade also criticises the Congress-NCP ruling coalition for using the verdict to gain support from the backward classes in the forthcoming election.

KAWADE’S REACTION is at odds with that of another high-profile dalit politician, Ramdas Athavale, considered close to the NCP. Athavale hailed the judgement as historic and said, “I support the judgement although I and members of the dalit community would have been happier if all 11 had been convicted. Dalits can now look to the courts for justice.”

Like most other dalit activists, Dr Anand Teltumbde, grandson of Dr BR Ambedkar and a well-known dalit writer, is dismayed because the judgement did not convict anyone for caste atrocities. “Every crime against dalits invariably has a casteist dimension. It is because of this that the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act defines an atrocity as any crime committed by a non-dalit against a dalit. I don’t understand why the Khairlanji judgement sidelined this.”

The final chapter in the story of the Khairlanji massacre has not been written. Bhotmange will appeal the judgement. Ejaz Khan confirms that the CBI is considering an appeal and believes the massacre is a clear example of a caste atrocity. Union Minister for Social Justice Meira Kumar has also asked the CBI to review the case with a view to filing an appeal.

As we travel with Bhotmange the day after the verdict, the car radio plays an old Raj Kapoor tune. As people do and have done for decades, Bhaiyyalal hums along, almost under his breath. He stops abruptly and looks at me. After what is perhaps a very long time a shadow of a smile plays on his lips, and he starts, softly, to sing.

In Maharashtra, where justice has remained out of the reach of dalits, the initial verdict in the Khairlanji massacre case, flawed though it may seem, might just be a new beginning.